Roller Races – ‘cause they were cancelled during Snowdown
Wednesday, Feb. 24 – 6pm
The Irish Embassy Pub – 900 Main Ave
Classic 2 up racing – 15 minutes full-throttle
$5 requested donation - Proceeds go to FLC Cycling
More Info or to register – hagen_d@fortlewis.edu
ALSO - Computrainer Races at the Hub Training Center Tuesday Feb. 16 at 5:30pm - more info - www.thehubtraining.com - chris@thehubtraining.com
Roller Races –
On February 24 at 6pm The Irish Embassy Pub will host the Roller Races, a Durango winter cycling tradition for over 20 years. Competitors will race two at a time on rollers and the winners will be determined by who can travel the farthest in 15 minutes. Rollers are a cyclists training tool where the rider must keep balanced on 2ft wide rollers, one under the front wheel and two under the rear that are connected by a large rubber band. There will be categories for Men and Women. The overall record is 10.5 miles – that’s 42mph! This is a great chance for the Durango cycling community to get together in the wintertime – half-price pints for competitors and spectators. For more information or to register contact Dave Hagen – hagen_d@fortlewis.edu
The Rocky Mountain Collegiate Cycling Conference (RMCCC) has announced the spring collegiate road schedule. FLC Cycling will be sending riders to all of the conference races in pursuit of the conference title and, most importantly, to prepare and determine the team that will take part in the National Collegiate Cycling Association (NCCA) Collegiate Road Nationals to be held in Madison, WI in early May. FLC Cycling will also host the RMCCC Conference Finals the last weekend in April that will have all the races that the team will compete in at Nationals.
Metro State has moved their ITT to Sunday March 7 and DU has moved their Crit to Saturday March 6 so as to have both their races on the same weekend.
For more info on the RMCCC - www.rmccc.org - For more info on the NCCA - www.usacycling.org/collegiate/
3/6 - University of Denver - CRIT
3/7 - Metro State College - ITT
3/13-3/14 - University of Colorado - CRIT
University of Northern Colorado - CRIT
3/20-3/21 - Colorado State U- Rams Cycling - CRIT, RR, TTT
3/27-3/28 - Mesa State College - RR, ITT-hc, CRIT
4/3-4/4 - Colorado School of Mines - ITT-hc, CRIT
4/10-4/11 - Colorado College - CRIT, ITT-hc
4/17-4/18 - United States Air Force Academy - RR,TTT,CRIT
4/24-4/25 - CONFERNCE FINALS Fort Lewis College - RR,TTT,CRIT
May 7-9 - USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships Madison, WI – RR, CRIT, TTT
If we could have had control of how Sunday was going to play out we would not have changed much. Our riders really came together as a team and pulled off what we came to Bend Oregon in hopes to do, which was win the Collegiate Team Omnium National Championships. The men arrived at the race around 8:30 in order to get warmed up for their 9:30 start time. The snow that was expected to hit over night never came and the temperatures were cold but mild. The course had frozen overnight and had started to thaw under the early morning sun creating what looked to be favorable conditions, too cold to be muddy and too warm to be icy. By the time the men were lined up at the start to begin racing the temperatures had risen and it looked like a nice day was in store. The race started with a fast pace set by our very own Ben sontagg on the front with. Sontagg built an early gap and held it all the way til the last lap where Zach McDonald, racing for the University of Washington, caught him. The last lap of the race was by far the most exciting of any race the entire weekend. Sontagg and McDonald battled back and forth changing the lead several times.
Sontagg was in front going into the final spring but was not able to hold off McDonald who took the National Championship. Rotem Ishay stayed close to the leaders fighting to bridge the gap to the top three riders the entire race and ended up finishing fourth. Our freshman rider Lucas Perez surprised all riding in the top ten for almost the whole race and finishing 9th followed by Greg Cerpenter in 10th. Lucas had an amazing race and looked calm and collected the whole time. We can be looking forward to seeing some great riding in the future from this guy. Jesse Dekrey also had a strong race and finished in 14th place. Chad Wells had an unfortunate race, getting taken out twice by other racers. He recovered from the first crash which put him into dead last and was able to move up the top ten when he was taken out again. This time the crash caused serious damage to his bike destroying both the front and rear break levers causing him to pull out of the race. Ian Burnett was also unable to finish the race due to mechanical difficulties and Andrew Llewellyn did not finish as well, hurting from his U23 race the day before. The team was looking in great position to be able to win the team omnium award, it was now all up to the women to secure it.
The women’s race started at 1:00, which began with an explosion by Teal Stetson-Lee who almost immediately created a gap between her and the rest of the field. Teal was off the front for the entire race and going into the last lap had a 1-minute and 30 Second gap on Ashley James of Lindsey Wilson College who was in second. It seemed fairly certain that Teal had it in the bag until she crashed 1KM from the finish destroying her rear derailer. She got up quick and began running down the course. It was very intense moment and nobody new if she could run all the way to the finish line without being caught. Not only did she make it to the finish still in first but she won by 20 seconds! Megan Long was not to far behind the second place finisher with Missy Erickson finishing 5th. Sarah Sturm finished in 12th place and Stephanie Falls finished close to last with a huge effort. Stephanie’s chain broke several hundred feet after the last pit stop and she still ran it all the way through the second half of the course to finish. With the Women getting three on the podium it was obvious that we had the secured the team omnium title.When the points came back Fort Lewis College had accumulated 188 points and Lees McRae had earned 166 points.
After the racing had ended for the day everyone headed to the Deschutes beer and warming tent for the awards ceremony. FLC was very excited and showed great team spirit carrying their top finishers to the podium as they were called. When the whole team was called up to the podium to be to be awarded the Division 1 Omnium -USA Cycling National Collegiate Cyclocross Championships everyone was rather ecstatic.
Lucas Perez, Teal Stetson-Lee, and Greg Carpenter cheer on Dave Hagen as he races Saturday.
Today started off early again as we all got ready to go cheer our team manager Dave Hagen on while he raced. Everyone gathered at the boys house (we rented three houses for the weekend and divided them into a girls house, coaches house and boys house) where they had prepared breakfast and coffee for the team. After eating we all headed to the course to enjoy the spectating side of cycling for a short while. The course was in great condition for Dave’s race with a little snow that had fell over night and warmer temperatures the course wasn’t to icy or too muddy, it was just right. Dave started 91st and finished in 64th place looking good throughout his race.
Ben Sonntag gets used to the muddy conditions during practice.
After Dave’s race our riders went back to the houses and changed and got ready to practice while the course was open from noon-1. Chad Wells described the changing conditions as “the course is now muddy and slick but predictable, the ice was very unpredictable.” We will just have to wait and see what is in store for tomorrow. The forecast is calling for a chance of snow and freezing temperatures so more than likely it will be cold in the morning for the men’s race and muddy in the afternoon for the women.
The team registers with USA Cycling.
Once everyone had a chance to change and clean up a little bit we headed over to race registration to get race numbers and registered to compete. We then headed right back to the course to watch our teammate Andrew Llewelyn race in the U23 category. Andrew was looking strong and comfortable and finished well with an 11th place finish right behind Lees-McRae’s top rider, a good sign for tomorrow. Lees-McRae has been a long time rival and will probably be our toughest opponent tomorrow. Our FLC Men’s soccer team beat Lees-McRae last weekend for the Division II national championship which puts a little pressure on us to follow in their footsteps. In a race shortly after Ben’s a Durango local Grant Barry won the national championship title for Men 30-34.
Andrew Llewelyn during the U23 race.
We finished the day off with some R&R at the houses and a wonderful group dinner prepared at the coaches house by Annie Chenney and Jon Bailey. All-in-all it was a good day, everyone is looking strong, healthy and in form for the big day tomorrow. Look to the previous blog entry for a breakdown of the point system for the national title, how the team was chosen and who is looking to be our top contenders.
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Fort Lewis Cycling Team keeping warm in the tent.
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Hagen getting ready to take the start.
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Dave Hagen during his race on Saturday
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Megan getting used to the mud.
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Stephanie all smiles on Saturday
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Andrews support crew
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Ian entertaining himself with a frozen river as we take a break from our drive on Thursday.
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Bikes are being unloaded from the trailor after our arrival in Bend on Thursday.
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Missy Erickson follows Sarah Sturm up a stair set on the course Thursday during practice.
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Jon Baily helps Sarah Sturm get her bike ready to ride.
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Sarah Sturm has no problem with the icy conditions during practice on Thursday
The grand scheme for coming to cyclocross nationals is to win the overall team omnium title.
This is achieved through a point system which combines the men and women races. An overall individual win or podium placing goes along way because the scoring is very top heavy. In other words you get a lot of points for a first place finish and significantly less points for each subsequent finisher.
The selection process for who goes to nationals is the hardest part about being in a coaching and team management position. If it was up to Matt and Dave they would take everyone to the event but according to USA Cycling rules you are only allowed to bring eight riders to any national event. Read More…
Everyone ready to head to the course for some practice.
We started the day off with several pots of coffee, breakfast, and a group meeting before heading to the course. Our racers warmed up to ride the course which was open for practice from noon-1. Meanwhile Jon Bailey, one of our mechanics, had his hands full with repairs that included Chad Wells’ bike which on two separate occasions broke his shifter and snapped his handle bars. Chad Cheeney, also one of our mechanics, took to the course to battle for the single speed cyclocross national title and had strong finish in 12th place out of 136 riders.
Greg Carpenter fighting through the crowds during practice.
Once the course opened for practice it was a free for all with what must have been almost a thousand riders. Our racers where all business weaving through the crowds to make the most of the hour that they had to find the fastest lines and get used to the icy conditions. After the course closed for practice racing started up again. Late in the afternoon the sun came out and Annie Chenney, our team soigneur, competed in the womens 30-34 category and got to enjoy what looked to be the best conditions of the day due to the thawing ground. Annie has been an amazing support for our racers taking care of anything they might need from personal support to food runs and laundry.
Annie Chenney opening it up on a dry section.
The changing course conditions are a popular topic of discussion for all of our racers. It is impossible to know exactly what the course has in store for race day especially with snow in the forecast. The course seems to change by the hour and with any kind of weather change who knows what will happen. Ian Burnett thinks the course is “awesome, it is really cool to be out there, it is so different, so windy…conditions right now are unpredictable, you go into a corner confident and then the bike just slips out from underneath you…the ruts our really deceiving.”
Jesse Dekrey follows Greg Carpenter's wheel as they take laps during practice.
Ben Sonntag describes keeping control through the varying conditions as, “you can’t force the bike to go anywhere, you have to hope the bike goes in the right direction and just roll with it.” Ben said, “The course is fun, looking at the map it appeared to be a power course but now with the snow it is dangerous to put out too much power, but you have to remember that conditions today can be totally different than on Sunday.”
After everyone was able to rest and have their legs up for a bit we piled in the minivans and headed over to Chad Chenney’s child hood home for a memorable evening. Chad’s parents, brother and sister in law had a delicious and hearty dinner prepared. It was a special treat to see where the notorious Chad “chainsaw” Chenney had grown up.
The team prepares to feast on some delicious Chenney family cooking.
Tomorrow will be a bit of the same with Dave Hagen racing at 9:30, FLC racer Andrew Llewelyn racing in the U23 race in the afternoon, and practice again at noon. Training tomorrow will be really important for our Sunday racers who will be putting in some efforts in order to open the legs up for race day.
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Lucas Perez taking practice laps on the icy course.
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Our base camp at the Cyclocross national championship venue.
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John Bailey works his magic on racers bikes preparing them for practice.
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From left Ben Sonntag, Rotem Ishay, Matt Shriver, and Stephanie Falls take in the wall art on. Chad Chenney's childhood walls
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Teal Stetson-Lee and Jon Bailey discuss music after dinner at the Chenney residence.
We left Durango early Wednesday afternoon with plans to make it to Boise, Idaho where we would stay the night before finishing our drive to Bend, Oregon on Thursday. However, due to adverse driving conditions we were unable to make it to Boise and stayed in Burley, Idaho where we arrived a little after midnight.
The roads were pretty bad all the way to moab which made driving pretty treacherous.
We quickly got settled in our hotel and got a short night’s sleep before hitting the road at 7:00 on Thursday morning. The roads were dry and the weather was good all day and we arrived in Bend shortly before 5:00.
Watching the sun rise from the car after leaving, Burley where the temperature was 10 degrees.
We headed straight to the 2009 Cyclocross National Championship course where we set up base camp for the weekend. Our setup consists of the team trailer, which is mainly used for storage, and a 18′x22′ canvas tent, donated by Dave Ellis Canvas, which is heated by propane heaters. The tent is a wonderful and serves many purposes including a place for our team mechanics John Bailey and Chad Cheeney to work on our riders’ bikes, a spot for the team to gather and hang out, and a warm place out of the elements where racers can ride on their trainers. While camp was being set up our riders got bundled up and ready to take some practice laps on the course.
Ian Burnett gets his bike dialed in and is ready to check out the course.
The course is flat and technical and will suit our team well. Since it was late in the day the riding was very tricky as the course was covered in packed snow and ice. Several riders resorted to the trainers to get the proper workout that they needed. After spending two days in a car it is very important to get the legs moving and flushed out. There was not much time to ride and after a short while it was getting dark and time to head to the houses where we are staying to warm up and settle in.
We all gather around the kitchen to take in some serious calories for the upcoming weekend.
The night went well with a big group dinner and a meeting to go over the next day plans which includes an early morning ride on the course and an afternoon practice. The weather is supposed to take a turn for the worse with a winter storm watch in effect until Saturday. We will just have to wait and see what the weather does but rain or shine we are guaranteed to have some epic conditions come race day on Sunday.
Rotem Ishay of FLC Cycling Team
Fort Lewis College Cycling couldn’t be more fired up right now to head to Bend, Oregon for the US Cyclocross National Championship in search of another national title for Fort Lewis College. Rolling off the momentum from the FLC Men’s Soccer team recently defeating our main rivals in cycling, Lee’s McCrea College, at the NCAA Div 2 soccer national championships, just adds more fuel to the fire! The rivalry just keeps getting better between the two schools as Lee’s McCrea College is our most difficult opponent in cycling. We are no strangers to Cyclocross racing and have high hopes of keeping our top spot in the Div 1 NCCA rankings for cycling and taking back our Cyclocross title that we lost to Lee’s McCrea last December in Kansas City, Kansas. The riders have been preparing for this race for the past 3 months with intense training and racing in our region. The men and women riders will proudly represent Fort Lewis College and Durango at the National Championships this coming Sunday. We will line up against 25 other Div 1 schools where anything can happen on race day.
What is Cyclocross racing? Cyclocross is the fastest growing division in cycling due to its exciting courses and ease for spectators to attend and watch. Cyclocross is known for harsh racing conditions in mud, snow, cold and pouring rain. Since Cyclocross racing takes place from September-December, racers get all types of weather and racing conditions. The nastier the conditions, usually the more exciting the races are for fans with more crashes, sloppy mud, slick turns and lots of bike changes. A Cyclocross race takes place on a course that is roughly one mile long or a 6-7 minute lap. Races take place in city parks or on varied terrain that includes steep wooded sections of single track trail to fast pavement sections. A good course includes steep downhill sections on off camber slopes transitioning into trail or steep uphill and includes tight turns. Courses often twist and turn and include man made wooden barrier sections. The racers have to dismount from their bikes to run through the barriers and then remount their bikes at speed. The racing is so fast and intense during a 60 minute race that often riders can’t fix any kind of mechanical such as a flat tire or broken part. There are two pits on courses to assist riders with a mishap or to get a clean bike when the racing is very muddy or snowy. Each rider has a pit crew to assist in a bike change and riders can enter the pits for a new bike twice per lap adding to the excitement and often changing the outcome of a race. Riders compete on a bike that looks like a road bike with skinny knobby tires.
With Bend reporting snow similar to what we have in Durango, the racing action should be intense and heated. Our Women’s team will set the pace for the Men to follow later on Sunday morning. Leading the charge for the FLC Women will be Senior and no stranger to Cyclocross, Teal Stetson-Lee. Missy Erickson and Sarah Sturm will also be representing FLC Cycling in their second appearance at the Cyclocross National Championships. New to FLC Cycling this year and a former Junior National Cyclocross champion, Magen Long will add more depth to the Women’s Cyclocross team for FLC. Stephanie Falls from Ogden, Utah will be showcasing her skills in her first ever Cyclocross Nationals.
On the Men’s side, the German senior Ben Sonntag will look improve on his second place in last year’s national championship and hit the top step. Rotem Ishay, our current Mountain Bike National Champion will be vying for a podium spot as well. The Men’s roster is always deep and this year’s team is one of our most experienced. Chad Wells returns as a veteran in Cyclocross followed closely by some strong freshman.
We will be posting live updates throughout our journey to Bend on our website daily. Follow the best collegiate cycling team in the country as we seek another National Championship title in Bend, Oregon this weekend. You can follow FLC Cycling on Twitter also for live updates during the races all weekend long. Check our website daily for a report of the racing action at cycling.fortlewis.edu. Get behind these talented student cyclists and watch more Fort Lewis College history in the making. Go Skyhawks!
FLC Cycling Team Cyclocross National Team
Ben Sonntag
Rotem Ishay
Chad Wells
Greg Carpenter
Andrew Llewelyn
Jesse Dekrey
Lucas Perez
Ian Burnett
Teal Stetson-Lee
Missy Erickson
Sarah Sturm
Megan Long
Stephanie Falls
Click here for the final standings. Thanks to all - it was a great CX season.
Please take note that the awards ceremony for the series, originally scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 6 at 6pm at the Irish Embassy Pub, has changed to Monday, Dec. 7 at 6pm at the pub. On Sunday, the pub is having a party for the FLC Soccer Team, who won today and are going to the finals. We are hoping they will play the team from the other semifinal, Lees McRae - our big rival in collegiate cycling.
Here are the Point Standings for the series so far. Remember – one race will be thrown out – so that will change the standings in a few places at the end of the series (you can do some calculating on your own if it looks like you’ll be affected). The points are based off of standard USAC points tables. Please let me know if you see any errors.
This Saturday, Dec. 5, with much preliminary hoopla, is the 4th annual Russell the MuscleCross at Buckley Park. Racing action begins at 10am with the Singlespeeders followed by the kids race at 11am. The competitive Men’s A and 40+ goes off at 11:30 with the Men’s B and Open Women classes rolling at 12:30pm. Russ the Musc is the 5th race in the FLC Cyclocross Series presented by Animas Orthopedics, Coca-Cola and Rivergate Sports Medicine, and has many unique course features for the racers to navigate - everyone is welcome. The series concludes Sunday up at the FLC Stadium with the Series Finals - racing begins at 10am. For more info check out www.durangocyclery.com. I hear entry is $5!
We had a great weekend of racing in the 4 corners this weekend. A special thanks goes out to the Parks and Recreation Departments of Aztec and Durango for allowing us to have such great venues. Thanks also go out to Cottonwood Cycles and the Durango Wheel Club for the help with setting up and breaking down the courses. There is no official racing coming up Thanksgiving weekend, but practice races can be held at the Softball Complex at FLC at 10am for Saturday and Sunday. The series will wrap up the weekend of Dec. 5 and 6 with Russell the MuscleCross and the Series Finals at FLC.
Aztec Results
Santa Rita Results
This Saturday, Nov. 21, Aztec CX will happen as the fourth race in the FLC CX Series. The races will be held at Riverside Park in beautiful Aztec, NM. To get there from the East, go west through Aztec toward Farmington, after crossing the Animas River bridge (right near A&W) turn left on S. Light Plant Rd. which dead ends at the park. The course features a sojourn onto the BMX track and long sections on the river trail. Registration commences at 9am with the Open Women and Men’s B categories racing at 10am. The Kids/MTB race rolls at 11am and the Men’s A/Men’s 40+ races goes at 11:30am.
On Sunday there will be the great opportunity to race at Durango’s Santa Rita Park. The park is located at the intersection of Hwy 160/550 and Santa Rita Dr. (it is where the Chamber of Commerce building and Whitewater park is). This course features a tough run-up and the volleyball court sand. Again, registration commences at 9am with the Open Women and Men’s B categories racing at 10am. The Kids/MTB race rolls at 11am and the Men’s A/Men’s 40+ races goes at 11:30am.
Click here for the Cortez CX results.
Cortez CX is the third race of the seven race FLC Cyclocross Series p/b Animas
Orthopedics, Durango Coca-Cola and Rivergate Sports Medicine.
At Parque de Vida in Cortez the conditions were truly CX with 3 inches of
melting snow and windy/cold temps. The course started next to the Rec.
Center and used much of the terrain of the park including the banked hill of
the skate park, the edge of the goose pond and a long foray through the sand
of the volleyball courts right before the finish of the lap.
The Men’s B race was immediately dominated by Garrett Alexander (FLC) while
a group of five sat 10 seconds back for the first third of the race. The
third lap saw the chase group explode with 15 year old Sepp Kuss (Durango
Devo) and Scott Dahlberg (DCCX) distance themselves from the other chasers,
but the gap to Alexander kept growing a bit each lap and that was the final
order.
Teal Stetson-Lee (FLC) and Lauren Hall (Hudz/Subaru) took off the from the
gun to set the early pace while the rest of the women sorted themselves out.
FLC racers Missy Erickson and Stephanie Falls flip-flopped in third and
fourth most of the race. Stetson-Lee pulled away from Hall a couple laps
into the 6 lap race and went on for the win while a late race mechanical saw
Falls get a gap on Erickson that held up to the finish.
In the Men’s 40 year old and up race the sprint for the first turn was won
by Kenny When (Colavita NM) and he pulled away consistently each lap for the
runaway victory. Behind him a group of 4 battled for position with Robert
Sonora (DCCX) putting in the first attack and Jon Delacy (DCCX) the second
that left the other two chasers, Joe Burtoni (DCCX) and Dave Hagen (FLC) in
their wake. On the last lap Delacy ended up getting by Sonora for second.
The Men’s A field, which sometimes can resemble a much larger race with the
many world/national caliber racers hailing from the region, started like
they were shot out of a cannon. Matt Shriver (Rocky Mountain Chocolate
Factory) instantly put his stamp on the race by getting 20 seconds on the
first lap. Cycling legend Ned Overend (Boure), Joey Thompson (Rocky Mountain
Chocolate Factory), Greg Lewis (Directory Plus/Trek), Chad Wells
(Hudz/Subaru) and Michael Carroll (DCCX) set up the chase on the quickly
deteriorating course conditions. This group eventually split up in that
order with 20-30 second gaps between each with Overend getting 2nd and
Thompson 3rd and Shriver taking the win by a comfortable margin.
A big thank you goes out to Ami Fair, the Special Events Coordinator with
Cortez Parks and Rec.for making the race possible and the great volunteers
from the Cortez cycling community/Kokopelli Bike Shop.
Next on the slate for the series is a twin bill coming up this weekend, Nov.
21 and 22, with races in Aztec, NM on Saturday and back in Durango at Santa
Rita Park on Sunday.
A great weekend of racing was had by all.
Here are the results.
